Skip to the word

Added 10 October 2026

shrew

/ʃɹuː/ noun

In Latin: sōrex, mūsarāneus Wiktionary

noun Definition from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about shrew at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

Any of numerous small, mouselike, chiefly nocturnal, mammals of the family Soricidae.
Certain other small mammals that resemble true shrews.
An ill-tempered, nagging woman: a scold.

verb

To beshrew; to curse.

Origin

From Middle English schrewe, from Old English sċrēawa (“shrew”), from Proto-Germanic *skrawwaz (“thin; meagre; frail”), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker- (“to cut; shorten; skimp”). Cognates include Old High German scrawaz (“dwarf”), Norwegian skrugg (“dwarf”).

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

Back to today's word